Some Dive shops just don't work with me

[Lost Yooper]

I want to make one little thing clear. I don't personally care if dive shops charge $800 for OW so they can actually make some money and put out quality students for a change. If people can't afford this sport, then so be it. Even at $800 for a class and buying gear at top dollar, this hobby is NOT the most expensive out there. I'd rather see a reduction in the number of divers and, instead, see more quality divers fresh out of their classes. Unfortunately, the words "reduction" and increased "quality" don't go over well in the business world.

Mike

 

[Diversauras]

Originally posted by Lost Yooper
I want to make one little thing clear. I don't personally care if dive shops charge $800 for OW so they can actually make some money and put out quality students for a change. If people can't afford this sport, then so be it. Even at $800 for a class and buying gear at top dollar, this hobby is NOT the most expensive out there. I'd rather see a reduction in the number of divers and, instead, see more quality divers fresh out of their classes. Unfortunately, the words "reduction" and increased "quality" don't go over well in the business world.

Mike

Sadly you're right, profit is always ahead of quality.

 

[StraitsdiverGeo]

It must be nice to live close to your local dive shop and have a choice of which one to go to.
My Dive shop is a 70 mile drive one way. I can get air fills localy from a friend but?
We had a Dive shop in our town but he had to close his doors due to not enuff biz comming in. And when I would talk to other Divers in my area, they would tell me about the great deals they got off ebay????? Hmmm?
My dive shop does give me deals and I do only do Biz with him and we have become Friends as well and they care, so I guess there's alot to be said about rapport.

Regards, George

 

[booth22]

Our dive shop doesn't have an internet business, will match internet prices and then beat them by 5%, and offers free air fills... I'll just assume I'm lucky?

 

[O2BBubbleFree]

It must be nice to live close to your local dive shop and have a choice of which one to go to.

He may not still live there. After all, this thread was started in 2002.

 

[mdmbike to scuba]

Our dive shop doesn't have an internet business, will match internet prices and then beat them by 5%, and offers free air fills... I'll just assume I'm lucky?

Booth22, man! what shop is that? ?Mark

 

[diversteve]

Booth22, man! what shop is that? ?Mark

Saguaro in Mesa
www.saguarosports.com

You know you're posting in a thread from 4 years ago right?

 

[PerroneFord]

Wow, 70 miles. Let me blow your mind for a moment.

I drive 140-150 miles to the three shops I like most. The one I work at part time is about 32 miles away. I have one about 1 mile from my home. Last Sunday, I drove to the shop 140 miles away and bought a fill, 3 line arrows, and 2 cookies. It was a 20 miles out of the way where I was headed for my dive, but their service is worth it.

So for those in retail, there's a lesson. I drove PAST a shop 1 mile from my home, to get $25 worth of product 140 miles from my home. Think customers won't pay for good service? You're wrong. In fact, one of the shops I visit in that area regularly offers no classes, no pool, and no fills. I'll be spending about $1200 with them around Christmas. And yea, they're on the internet.

-P

It must be nice to live close to your local dive shop and have a choice of which one to go to.
My Dive shop is a 70 mile drive one way. I can get air fills localy from a friend but?
We had a Dive shop in our town but he had to close his doors due to not enuff biz comming in. And when I would talk to other Divers in my area, they would tell me about the great deals they got off ebay????? Hmmm?
My dive shop does give me deals and I do only do Biz with him and we have become Friends as well and they care, so I guess there's alot to be said about rapport.

Regards, George

 

[Stormbringer]

I've run across a number of local area dive shops here in San Antonio, San Marcos and Austin that are great and I would have little trouble recommending them. One in San Antonio (Dive World) recently screwed with me on a regulator purchase and not only tried to charge me full price on the reg but actually 20% over the manufacturer's suggested retail price...on top of a screwed up sales staff that knew less about their product line than I did and tried to sell me the wrong regulator stating it was something other than what it was. Needless to say I no longer give that LDS my business. Its not the internet that is killing all LDS - sometimes its the way some LDS are run and that only helps strengthen internet sales in the long run. Sure there are the Walmart type of shoppers looking for the lowest price on everything...but in my case, which I think isn't so unusual I was not looking for the lowest internet matching price on a reg just that the LDS should have been able to make a decent profit and sell me the reg at a "retail" price as suggested by the manufacturer and not try to rape me and other local customers by charging 20% over that suggested retail price. Plus everytime I asked about the regulator they kept trying to sell me the Legend LX Supreme (even after I mentioned I didn't need that one less than 2 minutes into the conversation). They sold me the Legend ACD instead of the Legend LX ACD which I had specified. They just didn't have their act together and I am glad to have other LDS to chose from. Competition is a good thing. In the end I got my money back after receiving a nasty email from the shop owner and went somewhere else and spent more money for a full Scubapro reg and new gauge setup just because the other LDS treated me well. I may have paid extra for the octo and new gauges but the LDS in San Marcos gave me a 20% discount on a new Scubapro MK17/S550 reg and I didnt even ask for a discount (now that's the way to run a business). If a particular LDS can't survive the competition then so be it...perhaps they are doing something wrong and need to take a good look at their business model and how they treat their customers. I'm sure the primary reason for such shop failures are found within not outside their store.

 

[redacted]

It is exteremely difficult (no, it's beyond that - it is impossible) to provide a facility and all the trappings, one-on-one information, education and help at internet prices.

I found Rick's 2002 response a good indication of how times are changing.

I guess that was BST - Before ScubaToys.